[mba] FW: Legalize Sunday liquor sales

This is from the Speaker of the House………………please let him know how you feel. //Mike From: Paul Thissen [mailto:rep.paul.thissen@house.mn] Sent: Monday, February 03, 2014 9:09 AM To: Michael Behrendt Subject: Re: Legalize Sunday liquor sales Thank you for taking the time to contact me in support of legalizing liquor sales on Sunday. I appreciated hearing from you. The consumer freedom offered by eliminating the prohibition on Sunday liquor sales is appealing. And if such a change could help to continue the tremendous and welcome growth in craft brewing and distilling in Minnesota, there is even more reason to make a change. I agree with you that those who desire to keep the ban in place bear the burden of proving why the law remains necessary, especially since Minnesota is among a small group of states that still prohibit certain liquor sales on Sunday. I also believe convenience is not the sole and overriding factor as I consider this issue. We are increasingly becoming a country where the expectation of immediate gratification has become the norm – and not without costs to us as individuals or as a society. That said, the economics of this issue are most relevant. As you likely know, liquor store owners are split on the issue. Those who object argue that the cost of staying open an additional day outweighs the revenues to be gained. The information I’ve seen backs that up. The projected increase in sales is anywhere from .5% to 3% since people will mostly spread their purchases rather than purchasing more alcohol. When you compare a 3% increase in revenues to a 15% increase in operating (not fixed) costs that would be required to stay open an extra day, the economic challenge for the small business owners becomes more clear. Certainly, government policy should not be driven solely by the economic viability of individual businesses, but it remains a relevant issue since the magnitude of the economic impact varies among liquor store owners. In particular, some smaller liquor stores worry that they would be at a competitive disadvantage with their larger competitors if they had to be open seven days a week since the margins are slimmer. While some would argue that these stores could choose to remain closed on Sundays, the fear is that smaller stores would lose customers to larger and better funded chains that could afford to be open all week, exacerbating the competitive disadvantage. Perhaps there is nothing wrong with a market increasingly dominated by big chains but I feel we all benefit from smaller businesses that offer consumers choice and strengthen communities. Again, not a reason by itself to prohibit Sunday sales, but perhaps in your conversations with opponents of Sunday sales you could identify a way to assist the small business owners while moving toward your goal of greater consumer convenience. There also tends to be a fair amount of support (understandably) for permitting Sunday sales from liquor stores in communities that are near borders with other states (such as Duluth). However, support for liquor sales on Sundays in these regions is not universal. Rep. Greg Davids, who has served on the Commerce Committee and whose district borders two states that allow Sunday sales – Iowa and Wisconsin – has stated that no liquor store owner in his district has ever told him he or she wanted to be open on Sunday. At the end of the day, I encourage you to reach out to liquor store owners and others in the industry and craft an agreeable and practical compromise solution. I do so with the knowledge that a Sunday sales proposal failed by a vote of 21 to 106 last year. As Speaker of the House, I will bring a bill to the floor, but it only makes sense if there is support to pass it. Again, thank you very much for your input. I hope that you’ll continue to let me know your views on the issues facing our community and our state. Paul Thissen State Representative Dear MN State Legislator, My name is Michael Behrendt. I am writing to urge you support Sunday Liquor sales in Minnesota. Polls show that over 60% of Minnesota voters believe that small businesswomen and men should have the liberty to choose whether they are open to consumers on Sundays or not. Governor Dayton has committed to signing a bill supporting consumers. We have an opportunity to expand consumer choice, increase private economic business activity and increase revenue for business and important government programs all at the same time. Plus we can utilize the concept of the "un-session" to repeal an outdated law that consumers overwhelmingly oppose. Support Sunday liquor sales. I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you. Sincerely, Michael Behrendt 9060 Douglas Drive, Eden Prairie, MN 55347